Basketball

• Michael Lee speaks to Bill Duffy and Mark Bartelstein [Agents provide insight into NBA labor dispute].
• Only 2 teams have fully paid all their players [Best and worst paying Greek clubs].
• Trying to grow its .19% share of the total basketball shoe market [Under Armour Signs Kemba Walker].
• In addition to Rob Pelinka of Landmark Sports Agency [NBA Superagent Arn Tellem Also Plotting China Exhibition Tour During Lockout].
• It gives some guys an opportunity to go back to school [NBA lockout leaves draft picks with plenty of time to fill, minus a paycheck].

Football

• Signature products to come in 2012 [Clinch Gear Signs Linebacker A.J. Hawk to Exclusive Endorsement Agreement].
• Concerns about right-of-first-refusal tags [Potential NFL free agents wait to learn how free they will be].
• A fun read…unless you went to law school and happen to be looking for a job [How Is Law School Like the NFL Draft?].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (7/8/2011) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

What:

When: March 25-26, 2011

Where: Washington Nationals Park, Washington D.C.

Friday, March 25 – Day One

9:00am -9:50           Keynote Presentation

10:00-10:45             Industry Trends and Outlook for 2011 in Sports

11:00-11:45             Sports 2.0: How Sports is recovering from the Global Economic Crisis

11:45-1:15               Interactive Breakout Lunch Exploration

1:30-2:15                 Keynote Presentation:

2:30-3:15                 The Changing Role of Media in Sports

3:30-4:15                 Sports Social Responsibility

3:30-4:15                 Pro and College Sports

4:30-5:15                 Closing the Deal: Interactive Negotiation Session

4:30-5:15                 Young Executives Panel

5:15-5:45                 Best Practices for Getting Hired

5:45pm                    Kickoff Reception : Sponsored by Georgetown University Sports Industry Management Masters Program and Washington Sports Business Professionals (WSBP)

Saturday, March 26 – Day Two

9:30am-10:15          Presentation – Presidents Council on Fitness, Sports and Health (PCFSH)

10:30 -11:30            Keynote Address:

11:55 -12:45            Speed-Networking Lunch: Interactive Breakout Sessions

1:00- 1:45                Communications and Public Relations in Sports

1:00-1:45                 Business & Finance in Sports

2:00-2:30                 Strategic Marketing in Sports

2:00pm-2:30           Law, Contracts, Negotiations and Representation in Sports

2:45pm-3:15           Sponsorship, Revenue Development and Ticketing

2:45 -3:15                Facilities Operations and Events Development in Sports

3:30-4:00                 Digital Media, Consumer Engagement and Mobile in Sports

3:30 -4:00                Economics, Analytics and Brand Management in Sports

4:15 -4:45                The SEME Experience: Building Your Personal Brand

4:55 -5:30                Resume & Personal Brand Critique

Confirmed Speakers

Alan Gromest – Washington Nationals (MLB), Human Resources
Allen Hermeling – RedPeg Inc., Vice President, Business Development
Andrea Cernich – President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition; Director of Strategic Partnerships
Andy Zipfel – USA Today, Senior Director, Sports Marketing and Development
Barry Ford – USTA, Director, Outreach & Advocacy
Billy Stone – CBS Sports, Executive Producer
Bobby Goldwater – The Goldwater Group, Principal
Britton Miller – Washington Nationals (MLB), Manager, Marketing Projects
Buffy Filippell – Teamwork Online, Founder/President
Chartese Burnett – Maroon PR, Director, Non-Profit Public Relations
Chris Gargani – Washington Nationals, VP, Managing Director, Sales and Marketing
Chris McGrath – CPA
Dan O’Neil – Georgetown University, Associate Athletic Director External Affair
Dave Schawb – Octagon, Vice President, Managing Director – First Call
David Eyl – Sportstoday, VP, Business Development
David Francis – USOC, Coordinator, Division of Legal & Government Affairs
Dawn Ridley – Ridley & Associates, President
Ellie Cox – Athletes for Hope, Director
Erin O’Boyle – NFL Players Association, Programs Manager
Felice Jones – NFLPA, AVP, Event Marketing
Gary Powers – Under Armour, Regional Manager
George Perry – GP4 Consulting, President
Greg Bibb – COO, Washington Mystics/ Executive Vice President of Business Operations, Washington Wizards
Ira Frankel – Blackboard, Senior Manager, Marketing Operations
Israel Negron – Washington Nationals, Director of Community Relations
Jamie O’Connor – DC United, Former VP, Marketing
Jeffrey Fried – NCAA Military Bowl by Northrop Grumman, Chairman
Jim DeLorenzo – Octagon Digital, Vice President
Jim Welch – USA Today, Deputy Managing Editor, Sports
Jimmy Lynn – Jlynn Associates, Principal
Joe Favorito – Sports and Entertainment Consultant
John Bonacci – Under Armour, Strategic Sales Coordinator
John Ralston – Team Services LLC, Manager, Sales
Jon Achar – ESPN, Vice President
Kaitlin Jacobi – Team Services LLC, Coordinator, Consulting
Karen Irish – U.S. Olympic Committee, Manager, Government Relations
Kelty Carpenter – ESPN, Programming & Acquisitions
Kevin Payne – D.C. United, President
Kevin Wright – Under Armour, Recruiting Assistant
Kurt Kehl – Washington Capitals (NHL), Vice President, Communications
Kyle Ragsdale – SB Nation, VP, Business Affairs & Finance
Lara Potter – Washington Nationals, Vice President, Communications
LaRhonda Lombardi – Washington Wizards & Mystics, Manager of Programs & Administration
Marty Conway – AOL, Former Director, Strategic Partnerships
Meredith Geisler – Meredith Communications, Owner
Nicola Murphy – Octagon, Athlete Marketing
Rich Daniel – DC Divas Women’s Professional Football, Executive
Rod Nenner – Washington Redskins, Senior Vice President, Marketing
Scott Horner – Octagon, Director of Communications, Athlete and Property Marketing
Scott Lewis – Washington Nationals, Manager, Consumer Marketing
Shana Gritsavage – Under Armour, Senior Manager, Corporate Giving & Events
Steve Beck – Military Bowl, Executive Director
Steve Lieberman – Comcast SportsNet, General Sales Manager
Ted Towne – Washington Nationals, Controller
Terry Hasseltine – Director, Maryland office of Sports Marketing
Tom George – Octagon, Senior Vice President of Athlete and Property Marketing
Zack Bolno – Washington Redskins/Wizards, Former Media Relations Director

Cost: $225 per person, $195 per person if group of 5+, $175 per person if group 10+, $125 per person if group 20+. Register here.

8th Annual Sports Events Marketing Experience (SEME 2011) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Happy Birthday to my mom, Gloria Heitner, who has to be the most amazing woman in the world.  New Orleans was a great time and Tulane put on a fantastic event.  Tomorrow, I will be speaking on a panel at the Nova Southeastern University Sports & Entertainment Law Symposium titled “Family Managing an Athlete’s Career.”  I will be able to discuss quite a bit regarding what I wrote in an upcoming Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law article titled, Closing the Cam Newton Loophole, a Sweeping Suggestion.  I have been attending quite a bit of hearings lately and taking a lot of depositions.  So I guess this is what life as a lawyer is all about.  Here are some stories I missed over the past week:

An All Football Wrap-Up

• Supposedly the largest deal ever given to an incoming NFL rookie [Under Armour Wins The Cam Newton Marketing Race].
• A look at what agents spend on their players leading up to the combine [$7.7 million spent on training rookie class].
• I’m not a big fan of this idea [Agent: Limit players to 16 games in proposed 18-game schedule].
• Includes quotes from Ralph Cindrich, Joe Linta, Peter Schaffer, and Eugene Parker [Agents don't expect much progress].
• This booklet has been sent out to all players [NFLPA Guide to the Lockout].
• Even though the league lost $32 million in 2009 and $45-50 million in 2010 [Huyghue: UFL plans to play, pay].
• So Oregon decides to let an agent off the hook at the same time it contemplates instituting a stricter athlete agent law? [Attorney general investigated agent-runner who paid former Oregon Ducks player]
• The comments are rather insightful [The NFL's Unfair Labor Practice Claim & Article LVIII(3)(A) of the CBA].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (2/18/2011) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Football

• The 9 largest agencies represent about 671 players [Agents, by the numbers].
• Under Armour continues to expand into new territory [Tom Brady Steps Into Under Armour].
• I keep wondering: What about the other 3 wire transfers? [Blake-agent transactions came during UNC tenure].

Basketball

• A mock dialogue to present the issues [Your NBA Labor Negotiations Primer].

Baseball

• Decent partial client list, no? [Boras Well-Positioned For Offseason]
• Tim Dierkes attempts to shed some light on arbitration [Mike Napoli And The Arbitration Process].

Sports Business

• No more cash flow problems for Creative Artists Agency [CAA Sells 35% Minority Interest To TPG: Lovett Says "This Strategic Partnership Marks New Start For Agency’s Future"].

Sports Law

• Add the state of Ohio to the list of states starting to take their athlete agent laws more seriously [Sports agents placed on notice].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (10/8/2010) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Baseball

• Finally an advantage to being an attorney agent? [Broader Implications of the MLBPA's Proposed Rule Change Regarding Agent Non-Competition Agreements]
• Smart move by finding a niche [His major league dreams dashed, local agent Nik Lubisich builds agency catering to Northwest players].
• September call-ups are usually pretty exciting [Clubs set for September's youth movement].

Basketball

• After much anticipation, it is coming soon [Plenty Riding On Under Armour’s Basketball Shoe].

Football

• I also doubt that Saban is anti-agent; he just needs to be more eloquent with his language [NFL agents want the same thing as Saban].
• Will this boost TV ratings in year 2? [Multiple former NFL players join the UFL]
• Good luck to Abu Toppin and Jack Huntington [Can Small Agency Hold On To Victor Cruz?].
• A lot of agents are going to soon be very busy working the phones [How an agent can define a career].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (8/27/2010) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

I am ready for a new phone.  I don’t think I hate anything or anyone as much as I hate the hourglass on my Blackberry Curve.  The damn icon is the death of me.  I have to take out the battery at least five times per day.  But not for much longer.  Yesterday, I went to Radio Shack and pre-ordered Sprint’s new HTC Evo, which comes out next Friday.  I cannot wait.  I’ll have it configured in time for the following week’s MLB Draft.  Dynasty is advising some great players, some of whom will sign and others I am sure will end up going to college or staying in higher education.  Bar Exam studying has been a grind, but I knew it wouldn’t be easy going into it.  I am also starting to get serious about looking for possible tenure-track professor positions in higher education for post-completion of the Florida Bar.  I am thankful to all of my friends who are giving me guidance in that area.  Here are some stories I missed over the past week:

Baseball

• On the White Sox, Astros, and Brewers [In three cities, an essential draft].
• Reasons why it is important for a player to have an advisor [Baseball Draft Questions: What Does Signability Really Mean?].

Football

• We will see if this helps at all, but the hiring should have been done a long time ago [Andre Johnson hires an agent].
• Based on their love of sponsoring red teams, do they go for the Cardinals/49ers? [Did American Needle Just Help Under Armour?]
• Does the NFLPA have the nuclear option of decertifying and suing under the antitrust laws? [American Needle case will have a huge impact on collective bargaining]

Basketball

• Will the NCAA connect the dots? [Death penalty for Oklahoma hoops? That's the hypothesis here].

Sports Business

• A big rise in sponsorship revenue is expected [Global Sports Revenue Set to Rise].
• Social media allowing true joint ventures [Athlete Social Media Value Could Be Realized Through Retail].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (5/28/2010) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Sports Business

• A job very well done by Red Bull [Red Bull's Project X = Sports Marketing Idea of the Year].
• Maybe not the world just yet, but starting off at the high school level is a good strategy [Can Under Armour, IMG Take the World By Storm?].
• St-Pierre t0 serve as the face of Under Armour’s Underwear [Under Armour signs UFC champ Georges St-Pierre to multi-year endorsement deal].
• I actually just yesterday had this discussion with somebody [End of the Day, Live Events Make Sports, Brands, King…].

Baseball

• A little baseball trademark law conversation [Wide world of ‘Series’].

Football

• No sense of urgency on the part of the owners [League rejects "lock-in" bargaining proposal].
• A two-paragraph statement that included no explanation – bothers me [Bryant loses final appeal].

Basketball

• BJ Armstrong answers a few questions while promoting the launch of Windows 7 [An Interview with BJ Armstrong].

Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (11/6/09) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

What: 7th Annual Relay Worldwide Sports Sponsorship Symposium by SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily

When: Wednesday, Sept. 30 – Thursday, Oct. 1, 2009

Where: New York City, NY at the Marriott Marquis

Keynote: Uli Becker, CEO and President, Reebok International

Panels:

Sept. 30

• 7:30 a.m. – Registration
• 8:30 a.m. – Welcome and Opening Remarks
  • Richard Weiss, Publisher, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal/Daily
  • Tim Mauer, CEO, Relay Worldwide
• 8:45 a.m. – The Recalibration of Sports Sponsorships and Event Marketing
  • Rich Lehrfeld, VP of Global Sponsorship Marketing, American Express
  • Tim McGhee, Exec Director of Corporate Sponsorships, AT&T
  • Dan McHugh, VP of Media, Sponsorship, and Activation, Anheuser-Busch
  • Scott O’Neil, President of MSG Sports
  • Matt Pensinger, Senior VP of Marketing Services and Consulting, Relay Worldwide
  • Mark Waller, Senior VP of Marketing and Sales, NFL
• 9:45 a.m. – The Rebranding of Gatorade: Inside the G Launch and Defending Against Competition in the Sports Drink Market
  • Sarah Robb O’Hagan, CMO of Gatorade
• 11:00 a.m. – The New Realities of Marketing: The Chief Marketers’ Perspective
  • Phil Clement, Global CMO and Communications Officer, Aon
  • Rory Finlay, Senior VP and Global CMO, Beam Global Spirits & Wine
  • Mark Ingall, Managing Director of Global Strategic Media and Marketing, Citigroup
  • Stewart Mitchell, Senior VP and Chief Strategy Officer, Sharp Electronics
  • Tony Pace, CMO of Subway
• 12:00 p.m. – Lunch
• 2:00 p.m. – Anatomy of the Procter & Gamble/NFL Sponsorship
  • Jason Dial, architect of the deal.
• 2:45 p.m. – Marketing to Hispanics: Leveraging Their Passion for Soccer and Other Sports
  • Marco Lopez, Senior Director of Relay Worldwide’s Hispanic Marketing practice
• 4:00 p.m. – The Ever-Changing Athlete Endorsement and Talent Procurement Business
  • Steve Battista, Senior VP of Branding, Under Armour
  • Frank Mahar, General Counsel, Genesco Sports Enterprises
  • Mike Principe, Managing Director, BEST
  • Ryan Steelberg, CEO, Brand Affinity Technologies
• 5:00 p.m. – Reception

Oct 1.

• 8:00 a.m. – Continental Breakfast
• 8:30 a.m. – Keynote Speech
• 9:15 a.m. – How the Sports Media Business and Media Buying are Changing Before Our Very Eyes
  • Ray Warren, EVP and Chief Revenue Officer, Comcast SportsNet
  • Jeff Flemings, Senior VP and Global Head of Social, VivaKi
  • Eric Fernandez, Senior Partner, MediaLink
  • Ed Erhardt, President, ESPN Customer Marketing and Sales
• 10:45 a.m. – Lifelock Makes its Mark in Sports
  • Todd Davis, CEO, Lifelock
• 11:30 a.m. – Up Next: A Futurecast on the Challenges in Sports and the Changes in Consumer Behavior
  • Rich Luker, CEO, The Luker Co.
  • Jerome Conlon, President, Brand Frameworks
  • Ben Kline, Chief Strategy Officer, Leo Burnett
  • Scott Hess, VP of Insights, Tru
  • Pat O’Connor, President, Minor League Baseball
• 12:30 p.m. – Conference Conclusion

Cost: $1,495 for SportsBusiness Journal paid subscribers. $1,650 for non-SportsBusiness Journal paid subscribers. Must register by September 23. Click here to register.

Relay Worldwide Sports Sponsorship Symposium from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

A good college friend and fraternity brother of mine, Adam Silverstein (@onlygators on Twitter) sent me a message to check out David Canter’s tweets criticizing Under Armor and the ad company that created UA’s new advertisement…and then his tweets backtracking from pressure yesterday.  Canter’s criticism was blasted using Twitter as his medium of choice, which is why I wondered to myself why I didn’t catch it without being notified.  Then I checked Canter’s Twitter page.  The DEC Management principal, who I considered a friend, apparently does not want me following his progress.  This is the note I received when I clicked the “Follow” button:

You have been blocked from following this account at the request of the user.

Oh well.  Anyway, Canter’s tweets from July 19th read:

Someone please fire the ad agency that did the new Devin Hester Under Armour ads. Wow beyond awful

@darrenrovell1 disappointing stuff to say the least– short UA stock– hester isnt a big enough name and the spots were atrocious

@darrenrovell1 is Darren Rovell,a sports business specialist at CNBC.  Canter’s statement yesterday:

I apologize if my advertising and comments offended any corporations last night- it wasn’t meant to hurt- only to be constructive criticism.

There is no problem with having opinions.  There is a problem with vocalizing those opinions when they reflect poorly on your company and your clients.  See one of Canter’s clients from this year’s NFL draft recently signed a deal with Under Armour.  In fact, Canter tweeted about it on June 22nd:

CONGRATULATIONS TO DEC MANAGEMENT CLIENT PAUL KRUGER WHO JUST SIGNED A NEW TWO YEAR DEAL TO ENDORSE UNDER ARMOUR

This post is not intended to harm Canter’s reputation (although I am a little disappointed that he decided to block me on Twitter), but instead to make people realize that what they say (especially on Twitter) cannot be erased.  And those statements, when you are an agent, go well beyond reflecting poorly on your own image.  It can hurt your clients as well.  We need to make sure to place damage controls on our clients’ usage of social media sites, and we should remember to think twice about what we say before we go tweeting away.

Remember that Twitter is a very powerful medium to promote players and your own business.  In the same respect, saying the wrong thing has its negative consequences.  One thing I will point out is that I give Canter credit for immediately apologizing for his remarks.  He owned up to his mistake and should be forgiven for it.

Will Agent’s Tweets Anger Under Armour? from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Anyone purchase their TeeBows yet?  How long until a lawsuit shuts that site down?  Okay, so I have 4 finals out of the way and only 1 left, sitting there laughing at me.  His name is Corporations and I will battle him at 8:30 a.m. on Monday.  Then it’s back to business as usual, but that business will be conducted down in South Florida for a couple of weeks.  I have Blue Key induction tomorrow night.  Interestingly, Tim Tebow, is in my induction class and Urban Meyer will be an honorary inductee.  Here are some stories I missed over the past week:

Basketball

• Starting next year, underclassmen will only have until May 8 to test the waters [NBA draft entrants to get shorter decision time].
• In the thick of the playoffs and leading up to the draft…why not a Carnival? [Carnival of the NBA #64].
• Think any agents have talked to this kid yet? [Athlete Chat: Kelvin Amayo]

Sports Business

• Twitter mentions to become a standard part of endorsement contracts? [And now, a tweet from our sponsors]
• As I mentioned in my interview with Paul Swann, professional athletes need to be very careful managing online persona [The Brian Wilson Twitter Saga].
• Start reaching out to UA to procure those shoe endorsement deals [Under Armour Now Officially A Shoe Company].

Football

• A small agency that worked hard for its clients and got 5 of them signed after the draft [NFL: Local agent has five clients sign deals or get invited to camp].

Baseball

• The Yankees are worth a lot of money [Baseball's Most Valuable Teams].

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Shabbat Shalom: Friday Wrap-Up (5/1/09) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules